THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


ODmar 


AND 


A  NEW  SONNET  FORM 


AND 


Translated  and  Edited  by 

(2~^<ko0^e 


NEW  YORK 

EDWIN  S.  GORHAM,  PUBLISHER 
1909 


EDITION  LIMITED  TO  TWO  HUNDRED  AND 
FIFTY  COPIES.  JUNE  22D,   1909 


COPYRIGHT,  1909 
BY  EDWIN  S.  GORHAM 


THE  subject  matter  of  the  verse  herein  con 
tained,  representing  as  it  does  two  wide 
ly  different  moods,  is  taken  almost  in 
toto  from  supposed  Ancient  American 
tablet-writings.      The    first    twenty-five    sonnets 
have  been  Englished  into  a  new,  hitherto  unused 
verse-form — the   Omar   sonnet.     It  consists  of 
three  inter-rhymed  Omar  quatrains  and  a  final 
couplet.    The  third  verse  of  the  first  quatrain  (in 
one   case   the   second   verse,    No.    XXIII)    es 
tablishes  the  rhyme-note  for  the  second,  and  so  on 
until  the  couplet  is  reached  which  rhymes  with 
the  third  verse  of  the  last  quatrain  and  "locks" 
the  whole: 

a-a-b-a-b-b-c-b-c-c-d-c-d-d, 

or  (as  in  XXIII) 
a-b-a-a-b-c-b-b-c-d-c-c-d-d. 

The  editor  maintains  that  this  type  of  sonnet 
has  just  as  suitable  a  raison  d'etre  for  the 
expression  of  certain  kinds  of  thought  as  the 
Petrarchian,  the  Spenserian,  and  the  Shake- 
sperean  types  have  for  other  kinds.  The  tone 
of  this  series  is,  for  the  most  part,  pessi- 

[3] 

762907 


PREFACE 


mistic — a  fact  that  has  led  archaeologists  to  be 
lieve  that  at  the  time  of  the  composition  of  these 
writings  the  Ancient  Americans  were  under 
going  political,  economical,  or  spiritual  oppres 
sion.  The  modernity  of  thought  gives  further 
noteworthy  testimony  to  the  high  degree  of 
civilization  attained  by  this  people. 

The  second  series,  consisting  of  fifty  lyrics 
mostly  in  the  conventional  sonnet  forms,  is  very 
different  in  tone  and  content.  Here  is  set  forth 
a  part  of  the  love  message  of  a  (Maya?)  Prince 
(cir.  8000  B.C.)  to  one,  Lefra,  whom  he  would 
have  made  his  Princess  had  not  considerations 
of  state  forbidden.  The  inscriptions  bearing 
directly  on  his  affaire  du  coeur  are  so  frag 
mentary  that  authorities  have  thus  far  been  un 
able  to  solve  the  details  of  it  satisfactorily.  This 
much,  however,  is  certain — that  the  Oriental 
ardor  and  sensuousness  of  the  young  Prince,  as 
expressed  in  these  sonnets,  are  such  as  to  rank 
him  among  the{  world's  greatest  lovers,\and!  to 
corroborate  to  some  extent  the  theory,  that  this 
ancient  people  and  the  early  Asiatics  were  closely 
similar  in  temperament  at  least,  and  that  in  all 

[4] 


PREFACE 


probability  the  latter  were  much  indebted  to  the 
former  for  their  civilization,  popular  belief  to 
the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

The  arrangement  of  selections  in  both  parts  is 
largely  arbitrary.  Frequently,  however,  two  in 
scriptions  occurred  on  the  same  tablet,  one  on 
each  side,  and  this,  therefore,  cleared  up  all  doubt 
as  to  the  consecutiveness  of  pairs  of  sonnets.  In 
a  few  cases  the  sonnet  form  has  not  seemed  ap 
propriate  for  the  thought;  for  instance,  No.  I 
of  the  Lefra  Lyrics  follows  Miss  Rossetti's 
"When  I  Am  Dead,  My  Dearest" ;  and  No.  XL, 
Miss  Dickinson's  "Constant." 

The  editor  has  shown  in  a  previous  work  that 
The  Psalms,  The  Commandments,  The  Beati 
tudes,  and  The  Lord's  Prayer  are,  as  a  rule,  son 
nets  in  thought,  and  that  they  can  very  easily  be 
made  to  fit  the  sonnet  form.  He  believes,  further 
more,  that,  more  frequently  than  not,  the  length, 
form,  and  content  of  the  average  hieroglyph 
testify  strongly  to  its  being  "sonnet"  in  spirit. 
Whether  it  was  consciously  made  so  or  not,  is 
another  question  and  one  that  deserves  further 
investigation. 

[5] 


Otonfrttta 

PART  ONE 

(Dmar  ^ounclB     -     -     page  1 


PART  TWO 

-     -     page  39 


A  LITTLE  SLUMBER  IN  A  CRADLE  DEEP, 

A  LITTLE  CRYING  FOR  THE  MOTHER'S  HAND, 

A  LITTLE  FALLING  AS  HE  TRIES  TO  CREEP, 

A  LITTLE  PRIDE  WHEN  HE  ALONE  CAN  STAND. 

A  LITTLE  PLAYING  WITH  A  PLEASING  TOY, 

A  LITTLE  BENDING  FROM  THE  DESTINED  PLAN, 

A  LITTLE  LEARNING  FOR  HIS  FUTURE  JOY, 

A  LITTLE  LONGING  TO  BECOME  A  MAN. 

A  LITTLE  DREAMING  AT  THE  EARNEST  START, 

A  LITTLE  STRIFE  AND  BATTLE  ON  THE  WAY, 

A  LITTLE  WEAKENING  OF  THE   WEARIED   HEART, 

A  LITTLE  SICKENING  AT  THE  CLOSE  OF  DAY. 

A  LITTLE  COLDNESS  AS  THE  LOVED  ONES  WEEP, — 

A  LITTLE  SLUMBER  IN  A  CRADLE  DEEP. 


PART  ONE 


(JDmar  £mtit*t0 

A  NEW  SONNET  FORM 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


HE  hand  was  dealt  to  you  without  a  care, 
That  you  a  place  should  round  the  table  share, 

And  join  the  players  in  their  merry  rout, 
Not  any  one  of  whom  can  tell  you  where 
The  wine,  the  company  came  from — or  about; 
Why  some  with  trumps  in  happy  victory  shout, 

Why  some  the  winning  suit  possess  in  vain, 
Why  some  by  skill  and  art  succeed  without. 

Play  thou  the  game  with  all  thy  might  and  main, 
From  trick  and  intrigue  faithfully  refrain; 

Cool  head,  true  heart,  a  spirit  aptly  gay 
Be  thine  to  guide  to  joys  thou  wouldst  attain. 
The  cards  all  out,  night  lost  in  morning's  gray, 
Once  more  the  cup — and  then  to  sleep  for  aye ! 


[II] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


Y 


II 


ES,  drink  the  cup  with  merry  laughter  round, 
And  let  the  hall  with  clinking  toast  resound, 

As  high  is  held  the  genial  sparkling  wine. 
Must  not  a  drop  within  the  bowl  be  found 
When  thou  hast  wooed  the  daughter  of  the  vine ; 
To  such  degree  the  vessel  must  incline 

That  e'en  the  dregs  reluctant  thou  mayst 

drain, — 
Thy  hearty  worship  show  at  Bacchus'  shrine. 

Then  let  the  goblet,  whence  thou  didst  obtain, 
Fall  careless  down  with  loud  resounding  strain. 
Wouldst  keep  it  for  thy  needs  to-morrow? 

Nay, 

Uncertain  is  the  time  thou  shalt  remain. 
Drink  deeply,  fully,  ardently,  to-day, — 
The  holder  of  thy  joy  cast  thou  away ! 


[12] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


w 


III 


HEN  comes  the  time  that  thou  must  lay  thy  head 
In  death  upon  the  pillow  that  has  fed 

Thy  dreams  of  youth,  of  boding  age  thy  rest, 
Have  then  no  thought  of  past  or  future  dread, 
But  as  thou  liv'dst,  e'er  hoping  for  the  best, 
Prepared  to  meet  the  worst  that  could  infest 

And  satisfied  with  whatsoever  came, — 
So  suffer  thou  the  last  of  this  grim  jest. 

Who  would  not  drink  the  whole  cup  doth  proclaim 
His  thirst's  depravity,  his  spirit's  maim. 

When  naught  but  dregs  are  in  its  hold  em 
braced 

Flinch  not  with  fear's  avoidance  or  with  shame, — 
But  raise  it  high,  the  smallest  drop  ne'er  waste, 
And  drain  as  eager  as  at  first  didst  taste. 


[13] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


I 


IV 


TARRY  at  the  inn.    How  long  I  stay 
Before  the  landlord  bids  me  turn  away 

I  do  not  know ;  nor  can  I  now  recall 
Quite  how  I  happed  my  journey  to  delay 
Just  here  and  now, — for  darkness  limits  all. 
Yet  such  seducing  lights  glow  in  the  hall 

That  I  have  little  care  to  penetrate 
The  puzzling  gloom  that  was,  or  is  to  fall. 

It  matters  naught.    While  at  this  place  I  wait 
Let  all  its  joys  my  being  intoxicate, 

Let  never  a  guest  without  full  gladness  be. 
For  only  once  can  we  participate 
Its  merriment  and  hospitality, — 
To  all  around,  then,  drink  hilariously ! 


[14] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


Y 


OU  hurry  on  and  think  each  fleeting  day 
Or  its  to-morrow  will  your  ills  allay, 

And  bring  to  you  that  longed-for  happiness 
Which  all  are  striving  for  along  the  way. 
You  always  mean  to  cease  the  storm  and  stress, 
You  ever  believe  He  is  about  to  bless, 

Exhaustion  sorely  pains  your  feverish  heart, 
And  yet  you  labor  not  a  whit  the  less. 

Now  stop,  ere  death  rend  soul  from  clay  apart, 
And  meditate  your  course  from  conscious  start 

To  heedless  present,  where  you  stand  forlorn ; 
What  has  it  yielded — all  the  strife,  the  smart? 
Ah,  if  the  past  has  been  of  profit  shorn, 
What  power  has  the  future  to  adorn! 


[15] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


A 


VI 


ND  on,  and  on,  with  eagerness  we  press, 
Determined  to  attain  to  nothing  less 

Than  grand  Utopia,  our  constant  dream. 
But  when  we  think  to  win  the  dear  success 
And  make  an  effort  final  and  supreme, 
We  find  the  goal  which  all  so  near  did  seem 

Is  forward  gone  and  left  us  far  behind. 
Then  with  renewed  exertions  and  extreme 

We  onward  dash,  to  every  hindrance  blind, 
Upon  perfection  firmly  soul  and  mind 

Both  concentrate  to  reach  the  golden  meed. 
Alas,  again  we  look  ahead  to  find 
The  place  to  which  our  keen  ambitions  lead 
Is  Never-Never-Never-Land  indeed! 


[16] 


A 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


VII 

SINGLE  play  the  gods  contrived  for  thee, 
Constructed  with  such  wondrous  artistry 

That  thou  thy  part  with  tragic  stride  mayst 

tread, 

Or  strut  it  thru  as  boist'rous  comedy. 
Preferring  both  thou  mayst  perhaps  proceed 
To  mix  the  two — thy  fated  fortune  lead 

Thru  ups  and  downs  to  its  uncertain  end, 
Tho  change  of  mask  thy  progress  sore  impede. 

To  me  the  lines  one  message  only  lend, — 
A  farce  uproarious  have  the  writers  penned, 

Buffoon  am  I,  bent  on  a  merry  lark 
From  rise  of  curtain  till  it  doth  descend. 
Then,  when  the  calcium  sheds  its  final  spark, 
The  theatre  remains  forever  dark. 


[17] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


W 


VIII 

HILE  gladsome  youth  with  lusty  ardor  stays 
And  brilliant  glows  its  all  seducing  blaze, 

Live  to  the  full.    The  appetizing  wine 
With  joyful  toast  and  bubbling  spirits  raise. 
Then  while  the  luscious  offspring  of  the  vine 
Thou  dost  imbibe,  nor  up  nor  down  incline 

Thy  questioning  eyes,  nor  glance  to  either 

side, 
But  to  the  cup  thy  very  soul  resign. 

When  to  the  dregs  hast  brought  its  teeming  tide, 
Fling  carelessly  into  the  chimney  wide 

Where  embers  now  may  soft  enfold  the  lees — 
Let  death  with  death  eternally  abide. 
On  hearth  asleep,  may  retrospect  appease 
The  soul  which  naught  in  fancied  future  sees. 


[18] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


I 


IX 


NTELLIGENCE  with  tantalizing  glow 
Its  feeble  ray  across  our  path  doth  throw 

To  guide  us  in  our  fragmentary  flight 
As  we  between  the  two  vast  Nothings  go. 
So  hard  it  is  to  kindle  from  the  Night, 
So  long  before  it  briefly  shineth  bright, 

So  soon  doth  ashen  ember  dark  enshroud — 
We  hardly  see  before  we  lose  the  light. 

But  fret  thou  not ;  for  those  who  are  allowed 
More  radiant  beams  are  dumb  to  read  the  cloud 

Of  darkness  past,  of  darkness  yet  to  be. 
Then  let  the  spark,  with  which  thou  art  endowed, 
Its  lustre  shed,  if  'twill,  subjectively, 
That  seeing  Self,  mayst  see  Infinity ! 


[19] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


S 


O  hard  it  is  from  our  long  sleep  to  wake, 
So  soon  again  doth  slumber  overtake, 

So  vexing  are  the  moments  animate 
To  nurture  hope,  unrealized  to  break ; 
So  very  sweet  the  pre-existent  state, 
And  that  which  eagerly  we  all  await — 

So  oppositely  filled  with  torturous  pain 
The  dream  which  cruelly  doth  separate, 

That  we  would  gladly  yield  it  and  remain 
In  sweet  Nirvana — undisturbed  plane 

And  natural — where  Peace  dwells  evermore. 
We  fear  no  punishment  that  may  obtain, 
To  taunt  us  after  waking  or  before ; 
But  just  the  hellish  gap  do  we  deplore. 


[20] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XI 

HEY  asked  of  transcendentalism  first, 
About  empiricism  they  conversed, 

They  pondered  long  on  realism  too, 
With  idealism  thought  to  quench  their  thirst, — 
They  basked  'neath  optimism's  roseate  hue, 
They  deemed  the  depths  of  pessimism  true, 

In  theism  they  sought  eternal  light, 
Till  pantheism  dawned  upon  their  view. 

Yet  none  of  these,  no  matter  how  bedight, 
Could  focus  clear  the  philosophic  sight. 

But  pragmatism  came  and  cleared  the  way 
By  compromise, — declaring  they  were  right 
Who  lived  the  life  all  livingly  to-day, 
And  bothered  not  about  remote  survey. 


[21] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


S 


XII 

O  then  the  problem  of  philosophy 
Was  solved  by  giving  up  the  mystery, 

And  taking  as  the  answer  to  it  all 
The  go-between  and  question-begging  key, 
This  pragmatism, — which  the  wise  men  call 
The  blossom  of  the  systems  great  and  small, 

Compounded  from  those  elements  in  each 
Which  hold  eternity  itself  in  thrall. 

Ah,  never  can  a  little  "ism"  teach, — 

No  matter  how  its  advocates  may  preach, — 

The  whither,  whence,  or  how,  of  this  quick 

clay, 

And  god  and  man  in  vain  thou  mayst  beseech. 
Then  quaff  the  cup, — thou  shalt  not  live  for  aye — 
So  be  a  pragmatist  just  for  to-day. 


[22] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XIII 

HE  ashen  fog's  impenetrable  pall 

Did  sudden  o'er  the  trafficked  city  fall 

And  silence,  death-like,  grim,  and  blind,  did 

reign; 

Yet  one,  in  flowing  garments,  gaunt  and  tall, 
Of  studious  visage,  it  could  not  restrain ; 
For  with  a  feeble  lantern  and  a  cane 

He  thought  to  light  and  feel  his  hidden  way. 
With  bold  conceit  he  started  off  amain 

And  traveled  far.    But  when  redawned  the  day 
He  saw  his  zigzag  wanderings  with  dismay, — 
His  search  had  ended  where  it  had  begun. 
The  stick  served  naught.    The  smothered,  flicker 
ing  ray 

Had  useless  been.    The  philosophic  one 
Was  taught  to  stay  at  home  and  wait  the  sun. 


[23] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XIV 

WO  travelers,  thrust  upon  the  thorny  way 
And  left  to  tramp  the  brambles  as  they  may, 

Go  forth — the  one  with  heavy  step  and  slow, 
The  other  with  a  spirit  light  and  gay. 
Responsive  to  the  wounds,  heart's  blood  doth  flow, 
Youth's  lusty  fires  to  smouldering  embers  grow, 

Yet  neither — be  he  free  or  sadly  bound — 
May  aught  about  the  whence  or  whither  know. 

The  jungle  cleared,  behold  the  double  mound 
Where  weeds  on  one  spring  over  and  around 

In  many  a  rank  and  rankled  scraggy  shred ; 
But  see  upon  the  other,  flower-crowned, 
How  rose  and  hyacinth  and  lilac  spread 
A  sacrificial  solace  for  the  dead. 


[24] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XV* 

O-DAY  is  not  To-day  away  from  thee, 
Past,  present,  future — mocking  trinity — 

Merge  all  together,  blank  and  meaningless, 
When  thou  art  not  within  heart-sound  of  me ; 
And  bankruptcy  of  time  brings  such  excess 
Of  debt  by  way  of  bitter  loneliness, 

Thru  wealth  of  misery  I  make  constant  moan 
And  pray  for  thee  to  balance  my  distress. 

Thou  with  me,  Love, — then  hours  and  days  are 

known, 
All  Time's  deriding  passage  too  well  shown 

By  speed  that  love  is  powerless  to  retard, — 
For  ere  thou  com'st,  it  seems  that  thou  hast  flown. 
'Tis  thou  I  want,  just  thou, — I  disregard 
The  wine,  the  loaf,  the  verse  of  eastern  bard. 


*  This  sonnet  would  seem  to  be  better  placed  with  "The 
Lefra  Lyrics."  It  was,  strange  to  say,  found  on  the  same 
tablet  as  the  preceding  one,  XIV.,  and  it  is  thought  to  be  an 
expression  of  regard  by  one  of  the  "travelers"  for  the  other. 
This  may  or  may  not  be  the  case. 


[25] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


W 


XVI 

HAT  matters  the  solution  of  it  all, 

The  wherefore,  whence  and  whither,  rise  and  fall 

Of  life's  quick  pulse?    We  ne'er  can  under 
stand  ; 

Tis  here  eternal  ignorance  holds  us  thrall. 
Let  Science  strive  with  her  sharp-witted  hand, 
With  patience  let  Philosophy  be  scanned, 

Let  Magic  and  Religion  persevere, — 
Instead  of  problems  yielding,  they  expand. 

A  puzzle  by  a  boy  is  cherished  dear, 
A  game  for  man  has  fascinating  cheer, 

You  love  your  friend  because  he  has  a  trait 
Not  understood,  peculiar,  yet  sincere. 
'Tis  only  things  unknown  that  can  create 
Pure  heart,  true  love,  right  faith,  achievement 
great. 


[26] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


/ 

T 


XVII 

O-MORROW"  and  "To-day"  and  "Yesterday,"- 
Time's  trinity  whose  flight  no  hand  can  stay — 

Each  one  of  which  into  the  other  leads, 
And  from  the  other  makes  its  constant  way. 
To-day  to  Yesterday  too  soon  proceeds, 
To-morrow  to  To-day  as  quickly  speeds, 

The  hasting  panorama  glides  as  tho 
To  mock  at  contemplated  human  deeds. 

Live  then  To-day :  for  out  of  it  doth  grow 
Your  past  and  future,  unto  it  yaxc  owe 

Whatever  was  or  will  be.  ^Time's  estate 
Entire,  is  now  and  here  To-day.    Let  no 
Regrets  for  Yesterday  procrastinate, 
To-morrow's  dawn  do  not  anticipate. 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XVIII 

HE  man  who  sees  the  stars  in  blackest  night 
And  thinks  of  darkness  as  excess  of  light, 

Who  knows  the  silver  lining  of  the  cloud 
Before  its  gloom  his  being  can  affright, 
By  whom  all  wrong  is  stanchly  disavowed 
Because  with  good  'tis  weighted  and  endowed, 

Or  claims  that  ill,  if  such  thing  doth  exist,- 
Is  fraught  with  profit,  hence  it  is  allowed, — 

This  man  by  men  is  called  an  optimist, — 
An  accurate  and  happy  theorist, 

And  every  preacher  of  whatever  school 
JDoth  place  him  first  upon  salvation's  list. 

sages  tell  with  measured  words  and  cool, 
That  he  is  but  a  self-deluded  fool. 


[28] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


F 


XIX 

ORGOTTEN"  and  "Forgetting"  and  "Forget," 
Three  monstrous  barks  with  sails  all  sternly  set 

For  cruising  far  upon  Oblivion's  sea, 
Regardless  of  Affection  waving  yet 
Upon  the  shore  in  tearful  misery. 
No  bottled  message  from  their  wake  may  be, 

No  cry  will  come  except  the  sea-gull's  caw, 
The  friends  have  gone — the  firths  sigh  dismally. 

Forgetfulness  is  nature's  surest  law: 
The  winter  snow  forgets  the  summer  thaw, 
The  storm  is  soon  forgotten  by  the  sky, 
The  sun  is  now  forgetting  what  it  saw 
When  last  it  shone.    Yet  progress  here  doth  lie, 
And  cheerful  hope  is  born  in  sad  good-bye. 


[29] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


I 


J 


XX 

MUCH  despise  such  evil  times  as  these, 
When  greed  is  rabid,  getting  a  disease, 
V  When  all  opinion  is  enslaved  in  gold 
And  man  is  measured  by  his  power  to  seize ; 
When  care  for  culture  is  considered  old, 
When  all  the  world's  best  stories  have  been  told, 
When  naught  there  is  'neath  heaven  that  is 

new, 
When  students  starve  and  poets  die  from  cold. 

Oh,  had  I  lived  when  hearts  were  strong  and  true, 
When  poverty  was  powerless  to  subdue, 

When  some  few  nooks  of  thought  were  un 
explored, 

When  doing  not  having  was  the  point  of  view, — 
Then  you  and  I  should  not  have  been  so  bored 
By  seeing  all  our  excellencies  ignored ! 


[30] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


D 


XXI 

ECREPIT  state,  bereft  of  vigor's  prime, 
Deprived  by  greed,  by  ignorance,  by  crime, 

And  most  by  smug  convention's  cheap  veneer, 
Of  all  that  was  thine  own  in  former  time! 
Far  off  Utopia,  the  vision  dear, 
Behind,  before,  of  every  sage  sincere, — 

Of  Nobca,  Topla,  Sonreme  and  Thore,* — 
As  sure  as  truth,  must  finally  appear. 

Keen  evolution  will  her  own  restore, 
Just  revolution  aid  her  as  before, 

Until  earth's  very  bowels  in  vengeance  quake ; 
Then  not  the  dream,  but  now  the  heavy  snore 
Of  nightmare  slumber  which  will  never  break 
Till  Socialism  blesses  it  awake. 


*  The  names,  presumably,  of  famous  seers  of  the  period. 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


I 


XXII 

F  thou  wouldst  be  enslaved  and  fully  bear 
The  burden  of  a  life  bestowed  unfair, — 

The  gift,  unasked,  which  only  fools  can  prize, 
If  thou  wouldst  take  as  thy  allotted  share 
The  cup's  whole  draught,  in  which  the  power  lies 
The  heart  and  soul  to  bitterly  chastise 

Beyond  all  human  effort  to  repress, 
Yet  which  convention's  puppet  ever  tries : 

Thy  morsel  freedom,  honor,  truth  assess, 
Thy  superficiality  confess, 

And  altar-ward  in  clanking  chains  advance. 
Then,  while  assumed  "authority"  doth  bless, 
Bow  low  thy  head,  in  shameful  cognizance 
Of  weakness,  bondage,  insignificance ! 


[32] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


W 


XXIII 

HEN  I  have  put  aside  this  mortal  clay, 

A  few  relations  and  my  gentle  friends 
Will  doubtless  stand  about  in  sad  array 
And  mourn  that  I  have  journeyed  on  my  way. 
If,  then,  when  my  real  self  to  peace  ascends 

Tis  sensate,  surely  it  will  also  grieve 
That  man  so  ill  a  compliment  extends 
When  o'er  the  house  in  ignorance  he  bends. 
/ 
Lament  me  not  when  death  doth  thus  relieve 

My  soul  of  the  contaminated  dust; 
Let  no  funereal  fashions  so  deceive, 
Do  not  to  candled  superstition  cleave, 
But  be  rejoiced,  e'en  envious  if  thou  must — 
The  tenant's  better  station  ne'er  distrust. 


[33] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


T 


XXIV 

HE  open  grave,  the  silence,  and  the  pall, 

The  cold,  the  sobs,  the  clodded  earth  let  fall, — 

"Ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust," — effaced 
Forever  life  and  heart  and  love  and  all ! 
Was  rendered  service  then  a  mocking  waste  ? 
Was  faith  in  God  and  Heaven  thru  her  misplaced  ? 

Was  any  solace  born  of  sentiment, 
But  hard  reality  had  now  erased  ? 

Perhaps  he  had  not  given  to  earth,  but  lent, 
Just  as  a  seed  which,  sown,  reclines  content, 

Till  resurrection  brings  the  fuller  day, — 
His  own  will  come  again  by  angels  sent — ? 
If  aught  the  grief  e'en  briefly  can  allay, 
Then  tell  him  not  that  death  deprives  for  aye. 


[34] 


THE  OMAR  SONNETS 


F 


XXV 

EAR  death?    Love  life?    Were  not  you,  crying, 

born? 
When  animation  from  the  clay  is  shorn 

And  little  minds  and  harrowed  hearts  ag 
grieve, 

Does  not  a  smile  the  pallid  face  adorn  ? 
Arrived  unwilling,  glad  when  time  to  leave, — 
These  signs,  arightly  read,  cannot  deceive, 

And  yet  we  misinterpret  purposely, — 
With  joy  and  grief  our  fickle  bosoms  heave. 

Love  death!    Hate  life!    The  one, — tranquility, 
Insensate,  irresponsible,  and  free; 

The  other, — turmoil,  howsoever  blest 
Or  glossed  or  charmed  the  spell  may  seem  to  be. 
Imposed,  not  chosen,  life's  ungrateful  quest, — 
Desired  the  things  that  men  pursue  with  zest. 


[35] 


PART  TWO 


3£jjrir0 


I  HAVE  THE  GREATEST  NAVY 

MANKIND  HAS  EVER  KNOWN,— 
IT  SAILS  THE  OCEAN  WAVY 

THRU  EVERY  EARTHLY  ZONE. 

II 

MY  SQUADRONS  ALL  UNITED, 

WITH  COLORS  FULL  UNFURLED, 
WOULD  NEED  BUT  TO  BE  SIGHTED 

To  TERRORIZE  THE  WORLD  : 

III 

THE  "HARDSHIP"  is  A  GREYHOUND 

INVULNERABLY  STEELED, 
THE  "WORSHIP"  WATCHES,  SPRAY-CROWNED, 

"APPRENTICE-SHIP"  TO  SHIELD: 

IV 

THERE'S  "FELLOWSHIP"  AND  "FRIENDSHIP," 
AND  "  WORKMANSHIP  "—AND  MORE, 

To  NAME  ALL,  TO  THE  END  SHIP, 
UNDOUBTEDLY  WOULD  BORE. 

BUT  THE  FLAGS  OF  ALL  ABOVE  DIP 

TO  ONE  WITH  GLORY  FRAUGHT, — 
THE  INDOMITABLE  "  LOVE-SHIP," 

MY  DOUGHTY  FLEET'S  DREADNAUGHT. 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


W 


ORDS  have  a  way,  my  dearest, 

Of  telling  everything : 
There's  naught  of  joy  or  sadness 

Their  power  cannot  bring. 
They  seem  of  every  passion 

To  be  the  master  key, 
O'er  solace  and  o'er  trouble 

They  hold  authority. 

The  hearts  of  all  they  open, 

Each  secret  seem  to  know, 
The  gamut  of  emotion 

From  end  to  end  they  go. 
But  here,  by  single  impotence 

Behold,  they  ring  untrue, — 
They  cannot  tell,  my  dearest, 

My  fervent  love  for  you. 


[39] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


D 


II 


AY  after  day  with  patience  I  had  sought 
Deliverance     from     this     plight     with     sorrow 

wrought, 

And  oft  I  prayed,  that  Thanatos  might  end 
The  ills  with  which  my  questioning  soul  was 

fraught. 

All  Science,  all  Philosophy  had  penned, 
All  that  Religion  from  her  tomes  could  lend, 
Brought  only  increase  of  chaotic  blight. 
Despondent   then,    I    found    thee,v  Heaven-sent 

friend, 

And   scaled   with   thee    Love's   lofty   mountain 

height. 

Its  topmost  peak  we  gained,  and  viewed  the  sight 
Of  valleys,  down  the  dangerous  depths  below, 
Whose  darks,  all  labyrinthed,  now  fail  to  fright. 
Altho  the  mysteries  neither  of  us  know, 
We  care  no  more,  for  Love  will  have  it  so. 


[40] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


III 


OWN  on  the  shore  where  the  waters  moan 
Often  I  listen  and  long  alone, 
But  the  only  message  I  hear  them  say 
Is,  "Lefra  is  wishing  for  you  to-day." 

ii 

Up  on  the  hills  where  the  lilies  blow 
Frequent  I  tarry  their  tale  to  know, 
But  the  only  story  the  flowers  tell 
Is,  "Lefra  is  loving  you  now  right  well." 

in 

Out  in  the  woods  where  the  world  is  still 
Slowly  I  linger  to  know  its  will, 
But  the  only  answer  the  silence  gives 
Is,  "Lefra  for  you  and  your  love  now  lives." 

IV 

O,  vain  imaginings  all  are  these 
Of  speechless  ocean  and  flowers  and  trees: 
Nor  heaven  nor  earth  a  joy  can  show 
Till  from  Lefra  alone  the  truth  I  know ! 

[41] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


P 


IV 


OOR  weakling  words,  my  Dear,  can  never  tell 
How  much  of  heart  and  soul  I  have  for  you, 
How  great  the  love,  how  fervent,  and  how 
true: 

But  yet  forgive  if  once  again  I  dwell 

Upon  that  passion  underneath  whose  spell 
I  am  enslaved,  whose  power  doth  subdue 
And  hold  me  bound  in  being  thru  and  thru 

To  you  whom  I  love  wisely  and  love  well : 

I  love  you,  love  you,  love  you,  love  you,  Dear, 
Beyond  all  kith  and  kin,  both  far  and  near, — 
Than  life  in  earth  or  heaven  more  sincere, — 
Than  loved  ones  passed  into  angelic  sphere, — 
Beyond  great  God  Himself  do  I  revere 
The  love  I  love  you  with,  my  Love,  my  Dear. 


[42] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


F  thou  couldst  know  with  what  entirety 

I  am  unto  thy  life  and  being  consigned, 
Or  couldst  but  feel  with  telepathic  mind 

What  I  in  mine  do  constant  hold  for  thee, — 

The  inner  workings  of  my  heart  couldst  see, — 
What  message  in  my  soul  is  clear  defined'. 
And   were    such    knowledge    mutually    en 
shrined, 

Ah,  then  could  I  to  death  go  peacefully ! 

Thou  canst  not  know, — my  passion  is  too  deep. 
And  I  can  never  learn  what  is  not  taught 
By  look,  by  word,  by  action,  or  by  thought. 
So  be  it,  Love,  but  let  me  ever  try 
With  feeble  tongue,  until  my  final  sleep, 
To  approximate  what  naught  can  specify. 


[43] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


H 


VI 


OW  do  I  love  thee?    What  a  passion  swells 
Within  this  homely,  unregenerate  breast 
For  thee,  and  all  that  is  made  manifest 

Within  thy  being?    No  crippled  writing  tells 

To  what  a  depth  of  love  thy  soul  impels 
My  higher  ego,  nor  can  be  expressed 
In  other  way;  nor  silence  can  attest 

What  far  beyond  small  mortal  power  dwells. 

Twould  be  a  joy  to  kiss  thy  garment's  hem, — 
Thou  willing.    To  kiss  thine  own  self-prof 
fered  hand, — 

A  bliss,  a  happiness  beyond  command ! 
But  if,  perchance,  at  some  great  moment  I 
Might  kiss  thy  lips — by  leave  or  stratagem — 
I  then,  my  Love,  with  ecstasy  should  die ! 


[44] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


M 


VII 

Y  Lefra  dear,  I  love  thee  every  day 

With  deeper  love  than  e'er  I  loved  before, — 
Each  hour,  each  moment,  every  second's  sway 

But  adds  increase  beyond  all  reckoned  store. 
I  love  thee  every  instant  more  and  more, — 

My  life,  my  heart,  my  soul  for  thee  vibrate ; 
But  tho  I  tell  my  passion  o'er  and  o'er 

Thou  dost  not  know — I  cannot  full  relate. 

O  troublous  world,  that  wilt  not  consecrate 

This  love  divine,  but  rather  wouldst  restrain, 

Why  didst  thou  then  this  happiness  create 

For  which  all  strive,  to  which  none  may 
attain ! 

If  such  an  one  as  Lefra  thou  couldst  know 

More  happiness  thou  wouldst  mete  out  than  woe. 


[45] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


H 


VIII 

OW  much  I  love  thee,  Love,  I  would  that  I 
By  art  or  look  or  utterance  might  tell, 
Or  by  some  flight  of  superhuman  spell 

Of  heart  and  soul  to  thee,  Dear,  signify 

That  love  which  takes  my  life  nor  lets  me  die; 
The   kiss,  th'   embrace,  the  fondling  thou 

know'st  well, — 
What  e'er  effusive  sign  thou  dost  impel, — 

Are  shallow  to  the  depths  they  do  imply. 

O  that  some  poet  of  the  golden  age, 

Who  thought  he  sang  a  passion  absolute, 
Were  with  us  now,  t'  attune  his  feeble  flute 

To  our  sweet  love,  and  all  his  powers  engage. 

His  rapturous  song  could  but  an  echo  be 

Of  that  which  binds  us  for  eternity. 


[46] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


IX 


HE  blest  assurance  that  thou  lovest  me 
Is  all  of  life  itself  and  more  beside, — 
Its  every  phase  upon  the  circle  wide 

Is  brightened  by  that  great  love's  certainty. 

The  Moving  Finger  no  more  tauntingly 

Obscures    the    way, — a    blind    and    baffling 

guide,— 
But  clear  around  the  purpose  is  descried, — 

Thou  cam'st  for  me  and  I,  my  Love,  for  thee. 

Thru  fog  and  clod  and  vegetive  we  came 

To  human,  where  we  touched  but  to  bestow 
Each  unto  each  perfection's  deepest  glow. 
And  when  again  we're  called  upon  to  go 
The  cycle  round,  our  former  states  we'll  shame 
Because  we  did  a  love  divine  proclaim. 


[47] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


B 


X 


1UT  yesterday  I  kissed  thy  hand, 
Beheld  thy  radiant  eyes, 
I  kissed  thy  lips,  made  to  command 
My  soul  until  its  rise; 
I  heard  thy  softly  spoken  word 
Of  sweetly  patient  love, 
And  felt  the  throb  thy  heart  conferred 
From  worshipped  heights  above. 

ii 

To-day  thy  hand  is  vanished, 

Thine  eyes  are  closed  to  me, 

Thy  sacred  lips'  commanding  red 

No  longer  do  I  see ; 

More  painful  yet — thy  voice  is  still 

Which  I  so  long  to  hear, 

But  O,  to-day,  the  mutual  thrill 

Of  heart  is  quite  as  clear! 


[48] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


M 


XI 


Y  love  for  thee,  my  Love,  what  can  it  do? 

Nay,  ask  me  not, — for  if  thou  canst  bestow 
E'en  small  return  for  its  contagious  glow, 
Its  potency  to  some  degree  dost  know. 

Immeasurable  its  depth,  its  power  too 

Is  far  beyond  all  reckoning  here  below ; 
Yet  since  'twill  e'er  by  course  presumptuous 

go, 

It  striveth  now  its  little  deeds  to  show : 

It  gives  me  hope,  it  gives  me  comfort  dear, 
And  bliss  and  joy  within  a  world  of  pain, 
It  gives  me  safety, — every  outward  gain, 
It  moulds  my  clay  to  a  completer  whole ; 
But  when  this  flesh  is  done  its  brief  career, 
My  love  for  thee,  my  Love,  will  save  my  soul ! 


[49] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XII 


O  be  with  thee,  my  Love,  to  be  with  thee 
Is  all  that  I,— below,  above, — desire, 
For  earth  gives  naught  of  happiness  that's 
higher, 

And  heaven  can  hold  no  greater  joy  for  me. 

The  weekly  hour  within  thy  company 

Seems  like  a  portioned  second  to  transpire, — 
To  be  with  thee  enough  it  would  require 

Indefinite  lengthening  of  eternity. 

Naught  is  there  real  except  the  now  and  here, — 
Tho  otherwise  idealists  may  dream, — 

Thy  absence  negatives  thy  being  dear 

And  thou  to  me  dost  non-existent  seem. 

But  present,  Love! — God  only  can  see  clear 
My  rapturous  bliss,  my  ecstasy  supreme ! 


[50] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XIII 

WOULD  that  I  had  power  to  express 

The  fervent  love  which  unto  thee  I  bear, 
E'en  to  unfold  by  pen  or  tongue  a  share 

Of   that   store   which   my   charged   heart   doth 
possess 

Would  be  a  boon  whose  comfort  none  can  guess. 
For  dumb  to  tell,  unable  to  declare 
Its  depth  and  strength,  how  canst  thou  be 
aware 

And  with  a  full  return  thy  lover  bless  ? 

The  faith  without  which  no  true  love  can  be 
Perhaps  a  means  in  my  soul  can  create 
Whereby  the  passion  it  can  full  translate 
To  thine.  Then  while  the  happy  message  goes, 
Gaze  thou  into  my  eyes  that  I  may  see 

That  thou  dost  understand  what  I  disclose. 


[51] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


F 


XIV 

OR  such  a  love,  my  Love,  as  thine  and  mine 
This  cold  world  seems  to  lack  in  charity, 
Since  it  affords  so  meagre  a  degree 

Of  sweet  communion  at  our  friendship's  shrine : 

When  each  with  each — a  presence  felt  divine — 
How  full  we  live,  how  dear  the  privacy 
Of  soul  with  soul !    Yet  never  can  it  be 

Except  at  moments  stolen  by  design. 

But  wretchedness  has  ever  hovered  round 

All  loves  supreme,  which,  strangers  on  the 

earth, 

In  highest  heaven  have  had  their  sacred  birth. 
O  let's  revolt  and  flee  convention's  sphere, 
Nor  wait  a  paradise  in  doubt  renowned, — 
If  love's  from  heaven, — then  heaven,  my  Love, 
is  here! 


[52] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


M 


XV 


Y  love  for  thee,  my  Love,  was  never  born, — 

For  had  it  been  'twould  surely  come  to  death, 
'Twould  then  have  lived  a  hollow,  transient 
breath, — 

But  it  arose  with  Earth  on  that  great  morn 

When  she  anew  was  to  her  cycle  sworn. 
Eternal  as  herself  it  lingereth, — 
An  everlasting  Yea  to  me  it  saith, 

And  living  ever,  never  is  outworn. 

But  thou  didst  touch  the  hidden  glow  to  flame, 
As  none  but  thee  could  e'er  have  done  beside, 
During  all  its  search  adown  Time's  telling 

tide. 

And  it  has  burned  so  deeply  in  thy  soul, 
That  when  we  journey  on  from  whence  we  came 
Our  friended  love  shall  light  the  circle  whole. 


[53] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


F 


XVI 

OR  all  the  world,  my  Love,  I  would  not  give 

The  sweetness  of  the  friendship  sealed  with 

thee,— 
'Tis  that  alone  hath  taught  me  how  to  live, 

And  saved  me  from  a  death-despondency. 
The  faith,  the  trust,  the  glad  security, 

The  dear  caress,  the  tender  glance  of  eye 
Are  joys  too  rare  for  one  in  chains  like  me ; 

Yet  were  they  fractioned,  I  should  surely  die. 

My  love,  which  tears  embalm  and  sanctify, 

Can  ne'er  be  measured  in  the  narrowed  flesh : 

But  spite  of  that,  be  patient  if  I  try 
At  every  hour  to  reckon  it  afresh, 

For  I  have  learned  thru  this  undying  love 

That  heaven  is  here  with  thee,  and  not  above ! 


[54] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XVII 


HE  waves  are  rolling  high,  Love, 

Along  the  fretted  shore: 

They  swish  and  surge  and  sigh,  Love, 

And  threaten  evermore 

As  they  approach  so  nigh,  Love, 

With  ever  deafening  roar. 

II 

But  I  have  naught  to  fear,  Love, 
Since  I  am  sure  of  thee, 
Tho  on  a  watery  bier,  Love, 
I'm  carried  out  to  sea, 
I  shall  not  shed  a  tear,  Love, 
My  comfort  strong  shall  be : 
That  as  I  love  thee  dear,  Love, 
So  also  thou  lov'st  me. 


[55] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XVIII 

LOVE  thee,  love  thee,  love  thee,  O  my  child,— 
With   all    my  bleeding  heart   and    sighing 

soul, — 
With  more  than  all  my  being,  past  control, 

With  strengthless  strengthened  passion,  undefiled. 

I  know  not  what  the  charm  that  hath  beguiled 
Me  from  myself,  I  only  know  it  stole 
Into  me  with  the  purpose  to  make  whole 

What  formerly  had  been  with  fault  reviled. 

Perhaps  the  Potter  molding  well  thy  clay, 
In  apprehension  lest  his  ideal  fail, 

A    remnant    dropped    from    which    he 

fashioned  me. 

What  difference  whence  arose  the  flaming  ray  ? 
Suffice  it  now  that  it  doth  strong  prevail, 
That  I  adore,  and  love,  and  worship  thee ! 


[56] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XIX 

LONG  for  those  grand  golden  days  of  yore 
When  you  and  I  in  sweet  simplicity 
Enjoyed  alone  our  love's  felicity, — 

Those  golden  days  I  ne'er  had  known  before, — 

Those  golden  days,  which,  past  forevermore, 
Yet  gave  to  us  midst  Laed,*  tranquility, 
Conception  of  our  love's  nobility 

By  mutual  message  spoken  o'er  and  o'er. 

Ah,  would  that  those  Elysian  days  had  stayed, — 
That  Time  just  then  and  there  had  ceased  its 

round, 

Or  had  eternalized  the  heaven  we  found. 
Too  poor  this  world  for  love's  supremacy, — 
It  gives  a  moment's  bliss  oft  long  delayed, 
Then  leaves  the  rest  to  stammering  memory. 


*  The  name,  perhaps,  of  a  sometime  famous  pyramid  in 
Central  America. 


[57] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


1 


XX 


NEVER  knew  myself  till  I  knew  you, 

And  felt  the  comfort  of  the  love  divine, — 
E'en  knowledge  small  of  men  was  never  mine 

Until  your  heart  I  had  tried  thru  and  thru. 

I  never  saw  within  this  world  a  hue 

Of  partial  light  till  that  love  'gan  to  shine, 
Whose  rays  of  constant  brilliancy  define 

What  darkness  threatened  once  e'er  to  subdue. 

O  love  me  better,  Love,  as  I  love  you, 

And  every  day  announce  the  growing  sign : 
Take  thou  my  soul  as  I  have  taken  thine, 

Be  thou  to  me  than  god  to  god  more  true, — 

For  then  eternity  shall  not  dissever, 

And  friendship's  love  of  loves  be  broken  never ! 


[58] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXI 

WOULD  that  I  might  overlive  again 

Long  past  good  times  that  I  have  spent  with 

thee: 
Of  all  my  life  that  has  not  been  in  vain, 

Valued  they  stand  as  hours  lived  worthily. 
Entire  the  bliss  that  they  presented  me, —         / 
Love  then  engrossed^niy  mind^my  heart/my 

soul, 
Ejected  reason  from  that  trinity, 

,   Forced    full    possession    'gainst    my    poor 
control. 

Delightful  'twas  to  have  my  being  whole 
Enraptured  by  such  loveliness  as  thine : 

Ah,  yes !    But  now,  all  o'er,  who  will  condole 
Remorse,  dejection,  woe,  'neath  which  I  pine? 

Life  is  but  love ;  love,  life ;  and  thou,  my  own, 

Thou  gav'st  me  all  that  I  have  ever  known. 


[59] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXII 

LOVE  thee  truly,  Lefra,  as  before 

Long  messages  to  thee  have  certified. 
Of  all  avowals  sworn  thee  o'er  and  o'er 

Vain  are  mere  words  expression  to  provide. 
E'en  for  the  half  of  love  I  have  in  store, 

The  hope  that  aught  may  by  thee  be  implied 
Has  spurred  me  on  to  sing  to  thee  once  more 

Excess  of  love  which  doth  in  me  abide. 

Emblazoned  on  my  heart  and  on  my  soul 
Thy  image  ever  vivid  do  I  wear. 

Run  riotous  my  love,  past  all  control, 

Unto  thee  doth  its  current  strong  repair. 

Lashed  by  its  force,  upon  unwelcome  shoal 
Yet  shall  I  die,  or  in  the  whirlpool's  snare. 


[60] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XXIII 

i 

HERE'S  a  road  to  heaven,  a  road  to  hell, 
A  road  for  the  sick  and  one  for  the  well, 
There's  a  road  for  the  false  and  a  road  for  the  true, 
But  the  road  for  me  is  the  road  to  you. 

II 

There's  a  road  thru  prairie  and  forest  and  glen, 
A  road  to  each  place  in  human  ken, 
There's  a  road  over  earth  and  a  road  over  sea, 
But  the  road  to  you  is  the  road  for  me. 

in 

There's  a  road  for  animal,  bird  and  beast, 
A  road  for  the  greatest,  a  road  for  the  least, 
There's  a  road  that  is  old  and  a  road  that  is  new, 
But  the  road  for  me  is  the  road  to  you. 

IV 

There's  a  road  for  the  heart  and  a  road  for  the  soul, 
There's  a  road  for  a  part  and  a  road  for  the  whole, 
There's  a  road  for  love — which  few  ever  see — 
'Tis  the  road  to  you  and  the  road  for  me. 
[61] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


M 


XXIV 

AN  says  he  loves.    Yet  ever  does  he  hide 
The  demonstration  of  the  flame  divine, 
Nor  suffers  it  in  secrecy  to  shine ; 

He  rather  would  that  it  should  not  abide, 

That  all  its  sweet  expression  be  denied, 
Than  of  its  holiness  display  one  sign : 
Ah,  can  we  then  be  sure  he  has  the  fine, 

Deep  love  by  which  all  being  is  sanctified? 

He  does  not  know  the  passion  strong  and  true, — 
Real  love  cannot  be  smothered  in  the  breast, 
It  must  unto  its  object  be  expressed. 
O  haste  the  day  when  man  shall  make  his  Life 
At  one  with  Love,  which  he  doth  now  subdue, 
For  not  till  then  shall  cease  his  earthly  strife. 


[62] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXV 

N  fetters  blind  and  darkly  did  he  grope 

His  passage  thru  the  thorn-entangled  way, 
His  heart  and  soul  the  spines  did  scar  and 
flay,— 

There  dwelt  within  a  spirit  lacking  hope. 

It  seemed  that  he  the  fated  path  could  cope 
No  longer,  courage  failed,  and  in  dismay 
He  thought  to  end  his  woe-begotten  day, — 

When  lo! — adown  the  course's  tangled  scope 

He  caught  a  light  which  lured  the  crisis  past : 
Its  constant  beam  denied  that  'twas  decoy, 
So  on  he  sped  to  ascertain  its  joy, 
Nor  knew  the  obstacles  that  stayed  before. 
Unconscious  striving  brought  him  where  at  last 
He  basks  beneath  the  flame  forevermore ! 


[63] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


L 


XXVI 

ET  absence  long  and  distance  far  ne'er  cast 

Extremest  love  into  oblivion's  mold, 
Fuse  ruin  in  the  memory  of  the  past, 

Enriched  with  warmth  all  powerless  to  grow 

cold. 
With  firm  resolve  to  fix  our  friendship  fast, 

So  clearly  in  thy  spirit's  vision  hold 
Entire  reflection  of  me  that  at  last 

Mayst  see  me  true  as  when  farewells  were 
told. 

A  picture  have  I,  Love,  so  real  of  thee 

No  blight  of  brain  could  cause  its  light  to 

fade, — 
Not  Death  itself  could  dark  its  brilliancy ; 

Glad  in  the  skill  with  which  Love  hath  por 
trayed 

Blest  friendship's  likeness,  unto  thee  and  me, 
Of  all  eternity  be  not  afraid. 


[64] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


E 


XXVII 

XTREME  the  beauty  of  the  sonnet  form 

With  which  inadequate  I  frame  thy  praise, 
Supreme  the  pattern  wherein  passion's  storm 

Exceeds  no  further  than  the  narrowed  phrase 
Most  used  for  love, — that  gleam  of  other  days, — 

Cadenced  by  Etnad,  Resneps,*  and  the  rest: 
No  Muse's  light  can  quite  outshine  its  rays, 

No  soul's  deep  thrill  but  finds  its  voice  the 
best. 

O  lover  mine,  of  holy  charm  possessed, 

Prostrate  in  worship  all  who  know  thee  lie, — 

Divinity  of  soul  in  flesh  expressed, 

Thou  pict'rest  forth  what  sonnets  specify. 

King  Heart,  King  Soul,  King  Being,  thou  wert 
so  blest, 

Example  for  this  stanza  to  supply ! 


*  The  names,  most  likely,  of  contemporary  poets. 


[65] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


L 


XXVIII 

OVE  makes  us  brute  and  angel,  both  in  one, — 
Excess  of  misery  and  of  joy  it  brings, — 
For  of  all  passions  which  the  poet  sings 

Ill-selfishness  is  bred  so  soon  in  none. 

Long  do  we  strive,  when  love  has  once  begun, 
Our  object  to  possess,  but  then  all  things 
Voice  mockingly  the  unrequited  stings, — 

Enticed  by  sweets,  by  woes  to  be  undone. 

Yet  'twas  worth  while  to  know  the  fleeting  bliss 
Of  loving  such  as  thee,  for  I  was  given 
Untold,  if  brief,  delights  of  highest  heaven,— 

Joyed,  purified  by  thy  life-giving  kiss. 

But  pity  'tis,  love  leaves  not  permanent 

Of  these  two  states,  th'  angelic  element. 


[66] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


U 


XXIX 

NIQUE  the  one  we  designate  as  friend : 

No  word  so  accurate  that  its  use  can  tell 
The  excellencies  which  in  his  being  blend. 

Of  all  encomiums  which  in  language  dwell, 
Yet  never  one  sufficiently  can  lend 

Opinion  of  his  goodness  full  and  well, — 
Unlock  the  hoard  with  justice  to  commend, — 

Let  all  behold  how  virtues  can  excel. 

Endowed  with  worth  which  cannot  be  defined, — 
Of  every  common  merit  too  possessed, 

Most  heightened  being  gods  e'er  origined, 
In  this  thy  subtle  value  is  expressed, — 

New  holy  thought  for  my  congenial  mind, 
Eternity's  great  dower  made  manifest. 


[67] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


E 


XXX* 

NDOW  me  now,  O  thou  most  gracious  Muse, 
In  whom,  thru  whom,  by  whom  love  is  ex 
pressed. 
As  richly  let  my  pen  be  now  possessed 

E'en  as  my  passion  doth  my  heart  infuse. 

More  now  than  e'er  before  my  poor  tongue  sues, 
As  I  invoke  with  all  surpassing  zest 
Anew  to  bless  the  love  before  confessed, — 

O,  now,  thy  eloquence  pray  let  me  use : 

Protect  this  one,  ye  gods,  from  every  woe,  — 
Desert  him  never  in  his  hour  of  need, — 
Yield  to  him  every  wish  that  life  can  speed, — 
Confer  on  him  of  good  an  overflow, — 
Keep  him  near  Love's  undying  heart  for  aye, — 
Enrich  his  path  with  joy  from  day  to  day. 


*  This  sonnet,  In  which  the  masculine  form  of  the  per 
sonal  pronoun  occurs,  is  one  of  the  few  supposed  to  have  been 
written  by  Lefra  to  her  Prince. 


[68] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XXXI 


0  say,  I  love  thee,  Lef  ra  dear, 
Is  putting  it  too  mildly, — 

1  honor,  idolize,  revere, 
Adore,  and  worship  wildly 

Each  atom  in  thy  microcosmic  sphere. 

ii 

Thou  art  my  being,  my  heart,  my  soul, 

Thou  art  my  life's  salvation, 

Of  my  small  part  thou  art  the  whole, 

My  better  incarnation, — 

My  God,  myself  art  thou  whom  I  extol  1 


[69] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XXXII 

HY  honeyed  lips'  intoxicating  sweets 

How  often  do  I  long  to  taste  again ! 
O  that  I  had  those  dear  delicious  treats 

Usurped  for  e'er  when  once  I  did  obtain ! 
A  life  elixir  in  their  nectar  dwells, 

Reviving  him  on  whom  thou  dost  bestow 
The  joy  of  knowing  all  their  flavor  tells, 

More  fully  than  aught  else  that  earth  can 
show. 

Yet  then,  O  spare  for  me  each  sugared  kiss 

Housed  in  those  sweet,  seductive  lips  of  thine ; 

E'en  grant  me,  Love,  such  ecstasy  of  bliss, — 
A  right  exclusive  to  these  doors  be  mine. 

Reserve  for  me  each  atom  saccharine 

The  gods  have  placed  these  tinted  pearls  between. 


[70] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XXXIII 

0  kiss  thy  lips,  to  kiss  thy  lips,  my  Dear, 

Inbreathing  all  the  ardor  of  thy  soul, 
Succeeding  each  to  each,  so  oft,  so  near, 

All  seem  united  in  one  luscious  whole : 
Love  labels  they  on  which  the  sweets  enscroll 

Long  messages  which  are  not  formed  to  hear, 
Instead  they  silently  transfer  their  toll, 
Long  lingering  to  convey  it  full  and  clear. 

1  long  to  kiss  them  now  and  now  and  now : 

Vouchsafe  to  me  the  privilege,  I  pray. 

Each  drop  of  blood  in  their  transparent  clay 
For  me  with  tingling  passion,  Love,  endow. 
O  may  our  heaven,  Love,  mean  only  this : 
Red  lips  to  lips  in  one  eternal  kiss ! 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


J 


XXXIV 

UST  give  me  all, — Thy  body,  mind,  and  soul, — 

Assure  me  of  thy  mercy,  pity,  love, 
Acquaint  me  that  thy  heart,  entire  and  whole, 

Keeps  beating  for  me  with  the  surety  of 
Both  life  and  death  in  tender  constancy; 

Of  all  the  kisses  that  those  lips  possess 
Preserve  each  one  in  chastity  for  me, 

Deliver  all  in  endless,  sweet  caress ; 

Yet  let  me  too  within  thy  spirit's  glow 

See  all  the  radiance  of  its  sacred  light, — 

Kind  glances  from  rare  eye-stars  let  me  know, 
Entrance  me  still  as  smile  and  touch  unite. 

Let  me  be  blessed  with  such  possessions  fair, 

Excess  of  wealth  and  joy  shall  be  my  share. 


[72] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


A 


XXXV 

H,  Love,  to  kiss  the  roses  from  thy  lips, 

To  drink  the  dewy  nectar  they  contain, 
To  linger  there  and  lengthen  all  the  sips 

As  if  unto  the  very  dregs  to  drain, — 
To  raise  on  high  thy  dainty  finger  tips, 

Rewarding  each  a  million  times  again 
Till  every  one  with  deep  affection  drips, — 

Ah,  Love,  that  were  a  heaven  I  would  gain ! 

Pray  tell  why  I  must  from  these  sweets  refrain  ? 
By  God  thou  wert  with  such  a  store  endowed, 
And  to  the  store  such  quality  allowed, — 

I  could  not  rob  thee  e'en  if  thou  wouldst  deign; 

Nor  would  there  be  upon  thee  any  stain, 

So  please,  oh,  please,  remove  thy  high  disdain. 


[73] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXXVI 

I 

THINK  I  must  have  wished  at  birth 
That  death  might  be  delayed 
Until  I  found  upon  this  earth 
A  love  that  would  not  fade. 

ii 

But  now  that  I  its  beauty  know, 
I  still  desire  that  Death 
May  further  leniency  bestow 
Till  I  with  living  breath 
May  hear  my  Love  speak  out  the  word 
That  I  so  long  to  hear, — 
Till  to  my  Love  I  have  averred 
My  passion  full  and  clear, — 

in 

Till  I  have  held  that  heart  to  mine 
In  holy  ecstasy : 

The  whole  of  life  that  is  divine 
Will  then  be  given  me, 
And  Death  may  come,  I  will  recline 
Upon  his  bosom  peacefully. 

[74] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXXVII 

LOVE  thee,  Lefra !    Hast  thou  heard  before? 

Or  hath  the  holy  truth  by  thee  been  guessed  ? 
Ah,  yes,  I  know :  I've  told  thee  o'er  and  o'er, 

Yet  believe  me,  never  yet  have  I  expressed 
One  billionth  of  half  its  brimming  store. 

And  I  am  of  true  happiness  possessed, 
That  thou  dost  not  disdainfully  ignore 

What  is  to  thee  by  worthier  ones  professed. 

But  still  my  state  of  joy  is  incomplete 

Because  thou  dost  not  love  me  as  I  would 
That  thou  shouldst  do.    'Tis  futile,  well 

I  know, 
A  being  made  to  be  loved,  to  entreat 

To  love.    So  let  my  love  be  understood 

Within  thy  mind, — perchance  thy  heart 
may  grow. 


[75] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XXXVIII 

F  thou  couldst  love  me,  Lefra,  as  I  thee 

And  wouldst  vouchsafe  the  sweet  felicity 

Of  telling  that  great  feeling  unto  me, 

I  then  should  know  eternal  ecstasy. 

E'en  if  thou  couldst  with  thy  too  small  degree 

Of  love  for  me,  far  more  effusive  be,  — 

The  fond  caress — love's  language — let  me  see, — 

To  death  I  should  lie  down  exultingly! 

But  how  can  such  an  one  as  I  expect 
A  queen  to  condescend  and  me  select 
For  friend  and  lover,  and  as  such  protect? 
Nay,  nay, — my  passion  must  itself  subject 
To  proper  plane, — tho  hard  'tis  to  effect, — 
And  kiss  the  robes  wherewith  thy  feet  are  decked. 


[76] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


C 


XXXIX 

OME  thou  to  me  and  let  me  be  assured 

That,  spite  of  absence  and  its  burning  pain, 
Thy  love  for  me  and  mine  hath  still  endured, 

Thy  soul  and  mine  have  not  been  sundered 

twain. 
Come  thou  to  me,  that  friendship  be  secured ; 

Unbridge  the  hellish  distance  in  thy  train, 
That  thou  mayst  nevermore  from  me  be  lured 

For  sake  of  joy,  of  blood,  of  earthly  gain. 

Come  thou  to  me  forever  to  remain : 

Locked  soul  in  soul,  my  Love,  and  heart  in 

heart 

Yet  once  again,  shall  Death  itself  ne'er  part 
When  we  to  that  reality  attain. 
But   come,   my   Love,   O  come   with   passion's 

speed — 
On  highest  gust  of  welcome  thou  wilt  feed ! 


[77] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


T 


XL 


IRE  of  you,  my  Dearest? 
Not  until  the  sun — 
Which  thou  never  fearest — 
Ceases  in  its  run. 

ii 

Change,  Dear,  for  another? 
Not  until  the  maid, 
Now  a  virgin  mother, 
Feels  her  child-love  fade. 

in 

Surfeit  of  the  love-feast 
Long  I've  held  with  you? 
When  have  skies  above  ceased 
Smiling  down  their  blue ! 


[78] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


H 


XLI 

OW  sadly  do  I  rue  that  sorry  day 

When  thou  thy  love  shall  to  another  plight : 
Then  shall  my  sun  of  life  by  darkest  night 

Be  full  obscured  for  rays  sent  otherway. 

Let's  trust  that  Death  in  pity  may  convey 
My  grieving  soul  upon  its  upward  flight, 
Ere  thou  its  loving  tenderness  dost  smite 

By  robbing  it  of  what  elsewhere  must  pay. 

And  yet,  my  Love,  with  thy  well-molded  clay 
And  perfect  soul,  thine  is  the  sacred  right 
To  duplicate  thy  being  for  the  delight 

Of  human  kind  in  its  diseased  decay. 

First  I  shall  go  and  with  the  gods  make  plea, 

That  thy  dear  offspring  shall  be  like  to  thee ! 


[79] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


O 


XLII 

JUST  to  feel  the  pressure  of  thy  hand, 
To  see  again  the  faithful  beaming  eye, 
Once  more  to  hear,  ere  from  this  grief  I  die, 

Those  lips  give  out  the  word  I  understand. 

Thy  head  whose  waving  glory  I  have  scanned, 
O  once  again  to  fondle  it,  I  cry ! 
Come,  come  to  me  and  quell  this  gnawing 
sigh, 

Dear  heart  of  hearts,  for  God  our   friendship 
planned. 

But,  cursed  the  circumstance  and  damned  the 
world, 

That  caused  our  souls  to  touch  in  ecstasy, 

And  yet  ordained  that  we  should  parted  be ! 

Unbearable  each  hour  deprived  of  thee, 
Impertinent  all  toil  between  us  hurled, 

Absence  from  thee  is  hell's  eternity ! 


[80] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


XLIII 

EMEMBER,  Love,  when  I  am  far  away, 
When  continents  or  oceans  coldly  sever, 
When  Death's  sure  hand  has  silenced  me 
forever, — 

Remember,  Love,  what  oft  you've  heard  me  say. 

And  when  my  soul  has  left  this  troubled  clay, 
Ah,  then,  my  dear  one,  lose  from  memory 

never 
The  golden  truth  which  that  soul  did  endeavor 

To  imprint  upon  thy  soul  in  happier  day. 

And  if  thou  canst,  when  that  sad  separation 
The  desuetude  of  friendship  has  made  sure, 

By  some  forced  telepathic  operation 

Send  me  a  thought,  e'en  tho  it  be  obscure, — 

O  let  it  be  this  living  love  vibration : 

"I  ne'er  forget,  my  Love,  thy  words  endure !" 


[81] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


W 


XLIV 

HAT  matters  it?    Can  aught  of  joy  prevail 
Or  peace  for  those  upon  this  planet  born, 
Which  was  itself  from  Sol  unconscious  torn  ? 

What  general  cause  adventured  but  must  fail? 

What  truth  so  loudly  sung  but  error's  wail 

Can  bear  it  down  ?    What  beauty  is  not  shorn 
By  fate  ere  it  can  half  its  world  adorn? 

What  hope  in  life  that  death  doth  not  assail? 

What  matters  it  ?    Oh,  why  then  should  I  moan 
Because  my  love  doth  unrequited  lie? 
It  too  must  with  the  other  blessings  die 

And  leave  its  victim  saddened  and  alone. 

Cursed  be  the  power  that  sets  my  being  astir 

For  love  of  such  a  kind  as  I  confer. 


[82] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


I 


XLV 

LOVE  my  Love  despite  the  cursed  fate 

That  doth  forbid  that  fervent  love's  return, 
That  makes  my  Love  forever  seem  to  spurn 

The  passion  deep  and  true  and  consecrate 

With  which  I  knock  at  his  heart's  door  and  wait ; 
And  which  doth  with  such  awful  gnawing 

yearn 

For  answer.     Oh,  that  my  poor  soul  could 
learn 

The  lesson  which  the  waitings  indicate ! 

Let  sages  talk  of  unrequited  love — 

Its     comforts,     blessings,     and     its     noble 

heights — 

'All  these  are  but  mad  philosophic  flights ! 
To  love  without  response  is  tragedy, — 
Which  nor  in  earth  below  nor  heaven  above 
Can  rend  the  heart  of  man  so  awfully. 


[83] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


W 


XLVI 

HEN  I  am  near  to  thee,  my  Love,  and  feel 

Thy  living,  breathing  presence  near  to  me, 

Ah,  then,  unspeakable  felicity, 
What  higher  light  does  soul  to  soul  reveal ! 
Then  silence  fails  a  single  thought  to  steal 

That  is  not  known  ere  it  can  uttered  be ; 

When  I  am  near  to  thee,  my  Love,  from  thee 
The  quietest  heart-throb  I  could  ne'er  conceal. 

Since  such  the  state  our  souls  in  union  know, 
And   such   the  bliss   their  sacred  converse 

brings, 
Should  not  the  power,  whence  came  the  love, 

bestow 
The  privilege  of  remaining  ever  so? 

O,  bitterest  of  all  bitter  earthly  things, — 
Thy  absence — and  its  awful  sufferings ! 


[84] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


F 


XLVII 

ORGIVE  me,  Love,  if  often  I  complain 

And  sound  within  thy  ear  my  bitter  wail, 
Know  thou  that  I  full  gladly  would  refrain 

Were  I  assured  thy  love  would  e'er  prevail. 
Altho  unkind  suspicion  is  the  bane 

Which  friendship's  golden  flower  doth  assail, 
I  yet  doubt  on,  unable  to  restrain 

The  feeling  that  my  suit  to  thee  must  fail. 

For  I  am  small,  and  thou  art  far  too  great 
With  love  sincere  to  condescend  to  me ; 

Or  else  thou  dost  a  manner  new  create 
Concealing  that  which  I  so  long  to  see. 

And  so  I  do  deplore  my  saddened  fate, — 

For  what  is  ne'er  expressed  can  never  be. 


[85] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


A 


XLVIII 

MIND  have  I,  my  Love,  that  every  day 

Makes  woful  whimpering  theme  to  me  that 

thou, 
Of  all  fair  mortals,  never  can  convey 

A  love  to  me  such  as  I  long  for  now. 
More  vehemently  to  me  doth  it  say : 

A  fool  art  thou  such  passion  strong  to  vow, 
Remembering  that  she  ne'er  in  little  way 

Invests  return,  nor  welcome  doth  allow. 

A  heart  have  I,  my  Love,  that  every  hour 
Lets  refutation  to  such  argument 

Enter  my  mind  with  full  convincing  power. 

Out  upon  prudence  when  great  love  is  sent ! 

Ne'er  heed  the  mind,  tho  it  with  wisdom  tower, — 
Enough  to  find  the  heart's  divine  content ! 


[86] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


E 


XLIX 

'EN  tho  thou  hast  forgotten  me  so  soon, 

For  thy  brief  love  I'm  better  than  before, — 
My  sad,  discordant  heart  thou  didst  attune 

And  left  a  harmony  forevermore. 
My  soul  is  nobler  since  it  hath  touched  thine 

And  felt  the  rhythmic  oneness  of  the  two, 
Thy  love  endures,  tho  calmly  doth  entwine 

And   feebler  grows,   since   thou   canst   not 
renew. 

But  love  that's  given  disproportionate, 

From  higher  unto  lower,  cannot  stay,  — 

Tis  cruel  of  me  then  to  bewail  my  fate 

When  such  as  thine  finds  out  a  loftier  way. 

My  hope  is  here :  that  thou  for  whom  I  yearn, 

When  I  have  found  thy  heights,  wilt  then  return. 


[87] 


THE  LEFRA  LYRICS 


M 


Y  love  for  thee,  my  Love,  is  so  confounding, 

My  fevered  soul  so  violently  is  thrilled, 
The  speech  of  my  affection  so  abounding, 

My    former   troubled   heart   with   love    so 

filled,— 
The  universe  itself,  now  so  redounding 

With  what  to  me  before  was  never  willed, 
That  all  my  being  is  constantly  propounding 

New  pleasant  hopes  of  life  by  love  instilled. 

I  hope  for  times  beyond  my  mind's  conceiving, 
When  you  and  I  shall  ne'er  divided  be, — 

I  hope  for  love  from  you  beyond  believing 
Made  evident  by  word  and  act  to  me, — 

I  hope  our  hearts  full  union  are  achieving, — 
But  ah,  my  Love,  I  hope  all  hopelessly ! 


[88] 


A  LOT  OF  STRIFE  TO  KEEP  FROM  ASKING — WHY? 

A  LOT  OF  HOPE  TO  HOLD  US  TO  OUR  WAY, 

A  LOT  OF  FAITH  TO  LEAD  US  TO  OBEY, 

A  LOT  OF  LOVE  TO  TEACH  US  BUT  TO  SIGH; 

A  LOT  OF  GRIEF  AS  LIFE  IS  PASSING  BY, 

A  LOT  OF  JOY  THE  SORROW  TO  ALLAY, 

A  LOT  OF  WORK  TO  INTERSPERSE  THE  PLAY, 

A  LOT  OF  GOOD  WITH  WICKEDNESS  TO  VIE; 

A  LOT  OF  THOUGHT  AS  OLD  AGE  DRAWETH  NIGH, 

A  LOT  OF  ERROR  SEEN  IN  THE  SURVEY, 

A  LOT  OF  WOE  BECAUSE  OF  WASTED  DAY, 

A  LOT  OF  PREPARATION, — THEN,   TO   DIE  ! 

A  LOT  OF  TEARS  SHED  OVER  WAYWARD  CLAY, — 

A  LOT  OF  EARTH — SIX   FEET  BY  TWO — FOR  AYE  ! 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


JAN     2  1957  . 
MAY  24  1957 


RK'O  I 

NlM 

O  4 


Form  L9-100m-9.'52(A3105)444 


THE  LIBRARY 
UNIVERSITY  CF  CAI?fFCmNU 


m  f\f\f\  " '""  *'*'•  l'l   'HI 


